BOYD, ELMER F.

BOYD, ELMER F. (19 Mar. 1878-12 Feb. 1944), son of William F. and Anna Mariah Waters Boyd, was a native of Urbana, Ohio. He came to Cleveland in 1898 and entered one of the few professions open to blacks at the turn of the century—-undertaking—-operating a funeral home in Cleveland from 1905 until his death. Boyd learned his profession at Clark's College of Embalming in Cincinnati and Meyer's Embalming School in Springfield; passed the state examination on 5 June 1905; and that fall opened an office at 2604 Central Ave. in Cleveland. In Apr. 1906 he took on a partner, Lewis J. Dean, opening an establishment described as "a combination funeral parlor and haberdashery." In 1911 Dean left the business. Boyd continued alone, moving his business several times and, by 1938, changing its name to E. F. Boyd & Son. The son, Wm. F. Boyd, continued the business after his father's death. Elmer F. Boyd was active in a number of local civic and fraternal organizations, as well as local, state, and national professional organizations. He founded the Cleveland Funeral Directors' Assoc. and was a trustee of ST. JOHN'S AME CHURCH. His obituary reports that he gave generously to charitable and religious institutions. In 1910, Boyd married Cora Stewart (1875-4 Jan. 1960) of Salem, Ohio. A schoolteacher for 15 years early in her career, Cora Boyd was active in the PTA in the Central area and was a member and officer in the local, state, and district branches of the Fed. of Colored Women's Clubs.